Winter Park Village gets 2 new eateries

Restaurants

Lime Fresh Mexican Grill will open in the old Johnny Rockets, which closed earlier this year.

Lime already has a restaurant on Turkey Lake Road in Orlando. The restaurant chain started in Miami Beach.

Its owner recently signed a development agreement with Ruby Tuesday, which plans to open 200 of the restaurants nationwide, although Lime spokeswoman Melissa Trimp said the casual-dining chain is not involved with the Orlando-area restaurants.

But another Ruby Tuesday restaurant will open in Winter Park Village. Truffles Grill will open a 3,700-square-foot restaurant. It will replace Owen Allen, which is moving to the old Liz Claiborne spot in Winter Park Village.

Ruby Tuesday did not provide information on Truffles, but Winter Park Village's leasing company describes it as a moderately priced American bistro.

New financial officers

Robert Cawthorn is becoming chief financial officer of Maitland-based Tijuana Flats. Chester Wheeler is stepping down but keeping an advisory seat on the board of directors. At Lake Mary-based Ruth's Hospitality Group, executive vice president and chief financial officer Bob Vincent is moving into the new position of senior vice president of corporate strategy. Arne Haak – most recently chief financial officer of AirTran Airways – will take over as Ruth's chief financial officer.

Darden hires more

After dipping in 2010, Orlando-based Darden Restaurants' nationwide employment went back up last year, according to its recently filed annual report. It employed 178,500 people last year, up from 174,000. But Darden is still keeping labor expenses tight. While the costs increased, as a percentage of sales – a key metric – they declined from 33.1 to 32 percent. Darden said reasons for the labor savings included increased productivity, "improved wage-rate management" and lower manager incentive pay.

Study: Calorie counts off

A recent study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association showed that some dishes tested at chain restaurants – including soups at Darden's Olive Garden — had many more calories than indicated on menus or online. Other restaurants cited by the study for big discrepancies include Chipotle Mexican Grill, Boston Market and Outback Steakhouse. Restaurant industry officials have said that items can vary because of they are handmade.

Fur flies at Chick-fil-A

An Apopka-area Chick-fil-A recently tried a new marketing stunt: A "furry friends sleepover" for the stuffed animals of its younger customers. Children dropped off their stuffed animals on a Friday night. After the kids left, Chick-fil-A set up the toys in various poses – playing games, lying in a sleeping bag, and hanging out in the freezer – and took photos, which kids got when they picked up their animals the next day. The event was a hit, restaurant marketing director Marsha McNees said, who's thinking about another sleepover later this year.